Signs at parks, trails to tout open space

They will be posted at Montco areas bought with program funding.

Properties in Montgomery County purchased with open space funds soon will be marked with new signs touting the program.

Commissioners approved spending $7,500 to create and install 750 signs throughout the county at area parks and along recreational trails.

The money to purchase the signs will come out of the county's $150 million open space plan.

In November, county voters overwhelmingly passed a referendum supporting the borrowing of $150 million over the next decade to preserve open space.

"This is a way for us to let folks know what we are doing as we begin funding the referendum," Commissioner Chairman Jim Matthews said.

The signs state "Montgomery County Open Space Program," and depict a Dutch lily, the county flower, said Steve Nelson, county deputy chief operating officer.

The design was created by employees of the county Planning Commission, Nelson said.

"We want people to recognize that even if something is a township park, it is funded in part by the county program," Nelson said. "Any project or property that uses these dollars will be required to display the sign."

Nelson said he wasn't sure when the signs would be completed and displayed.

Probably in June, the county will undertake its first borrowing of $60 million to fund the referendum, Commissioner Tom Ellis said.

Those funds will be used to preserve farmland, enhance county parks and acquire land with public access to the Schuylkill River.

A framework of how the commissioners will spend the $150 million was approved in December.

Borrowing under the plan will cost the average county homeowner about $24 a year. The average county homeowner pays about $457 a year in county tax.